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Archive for October, 2011

I was invited by the good folks at Spirit of the Earth Church to their West Kentucky Hoodoo Festival, to present a workshop on magickal workings, since I have written a book on the subject; Spell It Correctly. The drive up was easy, the sun was shining, the directions perfect and I went right to the site with no trouble at all. The gathering was on a farm that belongs to one of the members of SOTE, it is a beautiful place! I presented the workshop, had a good response and was invited to stay for dinner, which I did. I never turn down food. David Clark told me that the organization of the festival was my handiwork since he, his wife Nancie and the other members of the group used my first book Chasing the Rainbow to design their festival. I was overwhelmed by that, it is a good thing to know that something that you have written actually does someone some good. I took my leave, reluctantly, of the fine folks of SOTE so I could get home before the sun went down. My reasons were two-fold; I have such a lousy sense of direction and I don’t see well at night. Before you tell me the reason I can’t see is because I’m old, let me just tell you that I have been night blind forever. I scared my first husband almost to death on a trip between Baton Rouge and Nashville…but I digress. Anyway I left confident that I could retrace my steps. I was so very wrong. I even had a huge landmark that looks like the Washington Memorial to guide me, I saw it on my way to the site, I just knew I couldn’t miss it, the monument is tall and the land is flat. I missed it. I drove and drove and drove. In that part of Kentucky there are no stores and no gas stations and no people. Just lots and lots of land. What I desperately needed was a gas station. As I drove on with the sun setting behind me, my gas gauge dropping and no gas stations or signs of civilization in front of me, my panic began to set in for real. I also realized something; there are no gas stations in Amish country because they don’t need gas stations. If only I could have have powered my car on horse manure I would have been in business as there was lots of that along the sides of the road. When the sun set I began to pray; oh please don’t let me run out of gas out here, I have no bars to call AAA, they would never find me anyway. Maybe Amish folks would find me, take pity on me and let me sleep in their barn because I was in trouble. Finally after what seemed like hours I saw lights in the distance and came to a cross roads! Hallelujah I was saved! I had to figure out how to get off the highway I was on and down to the road where I saw the lights. It was a lonely little gas station but it was at that moment, the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I pulled up, filled my tank never even looking at the price per gallon, I didn’t care. I went inside to ask directions and got them from a very nice young man with a very thick Indian accent. I smiled and thanked him and left as lost as when I had arrived. I tried to follow the directions he had given and continued to be lost but at least I was in a town. I just didn’t know which one. I found another gas station with lots of people in it, I just knew I could get directions. I was right, everyone in the place was more that happy to give me directions to Nashville. The nice redneck, the fellow in dreadlocks and the kind Hispanic man all gave me directions. I smiled harder and when I left I waved at the Hispanic gentleman who was riding away on a kid’s bike carrying a twelve park of Busch beer under one arm, I admired his balance. I drove away into the night and by following the directions of all three men found myself at the very same gas station again. I tried again and this time I ended up at a Walgreen’s where I accosted a lady in the parking lot for directions, she gave them and I tried again. And failed again. Then it hit me, I had a new phone! Maybe just maybe there was GPS, the only trick was finding it. My track record in finding things at that point was pretty low. But I pulled over and frantically went through my phone and found GPS. I programmed in Nashville and lo and behold a map appeared and the computer voice told me to turn left. I did with new hope which was quickly dashed when I went right back to the same gas station that I had visited twice before. I tried again and again and it might have just been my imagination but I thought the computer voice sounded irritated the sixth time it said ‘recalculating’. I got home that night, late, I did call my husband so he wouldn’t worry as soon as I had bars. To give you perspective on the trip; I left Nashville on I-24 and went through Clarksville, I came home on I-65 from Bowling Green. I’m gonna hire a driver.